While universities are pioneering new degrees for data sciences to meet the demands of the financial industry, this also reflects the view that the classic MBA doesn't meet all the needs of digital and data-oriented businesses. The New York Times published an article about this trend last week - highlighting Cornell Tech offering a new program that brings MBA graduates and computer science graduates together. The program includes courses "with skills like A/B testing, rapid prototyping and data-driven decision making, the bread and butter of Silicon Valley," according to the article.

Kelli, This is a good point in that current industry executives can go back for further training earning a certificate in data science to acquire additional skills needed in their careers. This will make them more valuble to their firms and open up opportunities for them in the industry overall.

With capabilities ranging from good communication to programming experience, data scientist is certainly "the unicorn of the industry." It's great to see more universities expanding their offerings to include data science, and that more students are pursuing studies in the field. This does have implications for execs currently in the industry, though, and I'm sure plenty of tech professionals will be returning to school to broaden their skills.